The Cell Culture and Assay Core has been a part of the Program Project since its inception. The overall goal of the Core is to facilitate and enhance the conduct of research by individual Research Units requiring services in cell culture, flow cytometry, PCR methods, ELISA, and immunoblot analysis. The Core offers the following services to Program Project members: 1. Cell culture: a. Maintenance of murine, rat, and human cell lines; b. Freezing, storage, and retrieval of eukaryotic cell lines and tissue specimens in the Core's liquid nitrogen tissue culture bank; c. Mycoplasma testing of cell lines; d. Central purchasing and testing of sera and tissue culture media. 2. Flow cytometry: a. Flow cytometric analysis of surface and intracellular molecules using the Core's FACSean flow cytometer; b. Assistance with the design and analysis of flow cytometrie studies. 3. PCR analysis: a. Real-time RT-PCR analysis using the Core's Model 7700 ABI Prism Sequence Detection System; b. Assistance with the design and analysis of competitive RT-PCR methods using cRNA standards; c. Assistance with PCR-based genotyping of transgenic and knockout mice. 4. ELISA and immunoblot analysis: a. Development of new ELISAs for individual projects and conduct of ELISAs established by the Core; b. Design and conduct of immunoblot analyses to detect proteins produced by cells and tissues. 5. Microarray analysis: a. Facilitation of microarray analyses through liaison with a dedicated UCSD Core facility; b. Assistance with experimental design and data interpretation of microarray studies.